2023 M/C’s

Sarah Fontaine-Sinclair

Sarah Fontaine-Sinclair is an Anishinaabe and Cree social justice activist who carries the name "Niimizhinibikwe” or “The Light that Dances on the Water Woman” and is a grade 12 student in French Immersion at École Secondaire Kelvin High School. She was the first home birth in the Opaskwayak Cree Nation in over 50 years and grew up attending marches and protests with her family. She is a climate change activist named Next Generation Peace Maker of the Year in 2019 by the Peace and Justice Studies Association and works to have youth voices heard on a school, communal and governmental level. She has been the first flutist with the Winnipeg Youth Symphony Orchestra for the past two years and participates in provincial honour bands yearly. Sarah is a past recipient of an MIYAA award in the cultural category and was sponsored by Manitoba Indigenous Reconciliation and Northern Relations. She is extremely honoured to be one of your MIYAA hosts for this year.

Cody McDonald

Taanshi, my name is Cody McDonald. I am a Michif person and a previous MIYAA award recipient. I was honoured with this award for my academic achievements in my senior year of high school. Currently, I am working to further my education at the University of Manitoba by pursuing a joint honours degree in statistics and actuarial mathematics. Personally, winning this award has changed my life. It allowed me to meet and form connections with people who have helped me tremendously in furthering my education and supporting me through later scholarship opportunities. I am very honoured to have the opportunity to be one of the MCs for this year’s ceremony. As it will allow me to give back to an organization that has done so much for me, kihchi-maarsii.